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| Portrait of Michelangelo by Giulio Bonasone line engraving 23.6 x 16.5 cm |
He was born in Caprese in the 1470s and trained first as a painter with Ghirlandaio, and then as a sculptor under the patronage of Lorenzo de’ Medici. In 1496, already known as sculptor, he went to Rome, where he carved the 'Pietà' for St Peter's.
Back in Florence in 1501 he began work on many sculptural and painterly projects most of which were left unfinished in 1505, when he was summoned to Rome to begin work on a sculpted tomb for Pope Julius II, a project that dogged him until 1545. From 1508 to 1512 he painted the vault of the Sistine Chapel with scenes from the Old Testament, from the Creation to the Story of Noah. Immediately celebrated, the Sistine Chapel ceiling, with its innumerable figures in complex, twisting poses and its exuberant use of colour, is the chief source of the Mannerist style.
The National Gallery, London
This is part 3 of a 4-part series on the works of Michelangelo:
Michelangelo’s interest in anatomy did not extend to the organs but focused on the muscles and bones. His surviving anatomical drawings, like the ones exhibited here, attest to his thorough understanding of certain muscles, especially those of the limbs. The dissections enabled Michelangelo to grasp how the surface and contour of the body change when one moves. This knowledge was crucial for the creation of his renowned heroic nudes.
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| 1515-20 Four Studies of a Left Leg red chalk, retraced with pen and brown ink Teylers Museum, Haarlem |
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| c1516 Christ before Pilate red chalk, pen and brown ink with brown ink framing lines 21.1 x 28.2 cm The Courtauld Gallery, London. Photo © The Courtauld |
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| 1516 Lazarus raised from the dead red chalk 25 x 18.3 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| 1516 Christ at the Column black chalk, with some stumping, over stylus underdrawing 27.4 x 14.3 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| c1518 Model for the Facade of San Lorenzo wood 216 x 283 cm Casa Buonarroti, Florence |
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| 1519-23 Two studies of a male torso in profile to right black chalk 22.5 x 16.5 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| 1520-34 The tomb of Giulano de' Medici Medici Chapel, San Lorenzo, Florence |
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| 1521-24 The Three Crosses red chalk and wash 39.3 x 28 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| 1521 Two Ideas for an Oil Lamp black chalk on beige antique laid paper 15.6 x 15.4 cm Harvard Art Museums Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College |
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| 1523-24 Three studies of a left arm and shoulder, seen from the back black chalk 162 x 264 cm Teylers Museum, Haarlem |
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| c1524 Study of a naked man, standing black stone, on red chalk lines, traces of incision with a stylus 38.5 x 44 cm Louvre, Paris |
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| 1524 Study for one of the Medici tombs, in San Lorenzo details not found |
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| 1524 Study for one of the Medici tombs, in San Lorenzo details not found |
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| 1524 Study for one of the Medici tombs, in San Lorenzo 32 x 20 cm Louvre, Paris |
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| 1524 Madonna and child chalk & writing ink on paper 54.1 x 39.6 cm The Museum Casa Buonarroti, Florence |
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| 1524-26 Four grotesque heads; two wrestling figures; Hercules and Antaeus black & red chalk gone over with a sharp stylus 25.4 x 34.8 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| 1525 A girl seated in profile to left, holding a spindle black and red chalk 28.6 x 18.2 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| 1525-28 Ideal head of a woman red chalk 28 x 22.8 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| c1525 Half-length figure of a woman pen and brown ink, over black and red chalk 32 x 25.6 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| c1525-30 The stoning of Saint Stephen black chalk, traces of silverpoint 25.4 x 35.8 cm Museums Bruges, Belgium |
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| c1525-30 The stoning of Saint Stephen detail |
Portrait of Andrea Quaratesi
This portrait in black chalk represents Andrea Quaratesi (1512-1585), a young Florentine noble whose friendship with Michelangelo, from whom he took drawing classes, is documented in letters. Michelangelo undertook portraits unwillingly and then probably only at the subject's insistence. Quaratesi's gaze directly engages that of the viewer and his dress is rendered with a close eye for detail, seen, for example, in the buttons of the shirt worn beneath the tunic.
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| 1530 Portrait of Andrea Quaratesi black chalk 41 x 29 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| 1530-34c Crouching Boy marble 54 cm high The State Hermitage Museum, Russia |
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| 1530-34 Four Studies, including two for a crucified figure black chalk Teylers Museum, Haarlem |
The Lamentation over the Dead Christ
Michelangelo`s emotive drawing in black chalk of the Virgin and onlookers lamenting the dead body of Christ was of such fame in the nineteenth century as to be known as the `Warwick Pietà` after the Earl of Warwick to whom the sheet belonged until acquired by the BM in 1896. The composition of six figures forms a compact triangle. There are many re-drawings and corrections, seen especially in the contours of Christ`s body. Christ`s sunken diaphragm, the consequence of his crucifixion, is drawn in a meticulously stippled technique whereby the shaved point of the chalk is employed to model form point by point - a contrast to the thickened and jagged outline of Christ`s chest and abdomen against the Virgin. Christ`s right hand appears to grasp the Virgin`s right shoulder as if still in the throes of death. |
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| 1530-35 The Lamentation over the Dead Christ red chalk; corrections in black chalk 28.1 x 26.8 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| c1530 Two Wrestlers terracotta 41 cm high Casa Buonarroti, Florence |
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| c1530 The Holy Family with the Infant Saint John the Baptist black and red chalk with pen and brown ink over stylus 27.9 x 39.4 cm The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles |
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| c1530 Archers Shooting at a Herm (from hérmata, meaning 'blocks of stone') red chalk (two shades) 21.9 x 32.3 Royal Collection Trust, UK |
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| c1530 A left arm and shoulder study on paper 16 x 13.4 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| 1532-33 The Virgin and Christ Child with the Infant St John black chalk 31.4 x 19.9 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| 1532-33 Christ risen black chalk on paper 41.2 x 27.2 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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| c1533 The Dream black chalk on laid paper 39.8 x 28.1 cm The Courtauld Gallery, London Photo © The Courtauld |
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| c1533-34 Head of Cleopatra black chalk on paper Casa Buonarroti, Florence |
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| 1534-41 The Holy Family with the Infant St. John black chalk 31.4 x 18.9 cm © The Trustees of the British Museum, London |
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